A Hundred Billion Lighthouses
by Wolfie-Dragon
Summary: The raid on Zarkon's headquarters at the end of season 2 is a success, leaving the Galra leaderless and without control. Voltron's mission is complete as the Galra empire collapses. However, with the destruction of the Empire any info showing where Pidge's family is is also lost. However, Pidge will not rest until she has found a way to search the entire galaxy for them.


A/N: This story is made for the Pidge Big Bang. I can't post links here, but you can find them on tumblr. Art for this story was made by the lovely Anonabelle and typintypos (their tumblr usernames). Check out the Pidge Big Bang tag on tumblr, or the collection on Archive of Our Own, for more stories!

* * *

" _It would not be much of a universe if it wasn't home to the people you love."_

\- Stephen Hawking

* * *

History is a funny thing. When you read a history book, or get taught by a bored underpaid teacher who has to condense 6000 years of the stuff into a few dozen hours, it seems like it's just a series of big events, with nothing really happening in between. A treaty was signed on this day, leading to a king's assassination in the following month, and his empire was formally dismantled a week later. One big shock, and nothing is the same again.

But in reality, it doesn't happen like that. Sure, there are big events, but they ripple forward, like tossing a stone into a pond. The stone is all the books will talk about, but it's the ripples that actually affect the lives of every little thing in that pond.

Pidge pondered this as she and the other paladins flew to yet another trouble spot, another planet rebelling against the crumbling Galra Empire. Funny how quickly that had gone. Just a month ago the Galra Empire had been unstoppable, the biggest nation the galaxy had ever seen.

And then the stone had dropped into the pond that had been so tightly controlled by Zarkon. Even the paladins hadn't thought it could happen. Bringing down the Empire had not been part of the plan. Not really. They had just planned to take down Zarkon, maybe take out the main fleet. None of them had dared to hope this big.

But then everything had happened so fast. Zarkon showing up in his armor, disabling the Castle. Allura taking down Haggar. And then something Pidge couldn't understand.

They weren't quite sure what happened next exactly. Surely it would be something historians and conspiracy theorists would debate for millenia. But all they knew was that Zarkon had fought Shiro for control of the Black Lion. Somehow Shiro had obtained Zarkon's bayard and used it on Black. Then a big explosion.

And Zarkon was dead. They had recovered his charred and mangled body, barely recognizable after being exposed to the vacuum of space.

Haggar the witch had apparently gone mad when she heard the news, and triggered an explosion. Or maybe it had simply been the massive battle causing more damage to the giant spaceship than it could stand.

All they knew was that less than a minute after they had stabbed Zarkon through the heart, the entire base had turned into debris collapsing on itself in the vacuum, failsafes and dead-man-switches incinerating classified records, entire fleets of fighters breaking down without the supply of quintessence.

At the time that seemed like the extent of the ripple. The capital was gone, and so was Zarkon. But the Empire spanned a million planets. There were countless other armies, other fleets, other commanders and governors and witches.

But sometimes it's one man who holds it all together, and without him the entire system falls apart. Without the central hub, nothing functioned anymore. Space stations self-destructed, communication relays broke down without quintessence, commanders lost connection with their officers. Days later it was clear there was no Empire anymore. Generals and admirals declared themselves kings while thousands of planets rose up in rebellion.

Like in this system the paladins were entering.

"So what's the situation here?" Lance asked. Allura stood up.

"Okay, this is a bit of a complicated one. The planet closest to the sun is inhabited by the Fenari," she said, bringing up an image of a green bird-like alien on the big screen.

"They're in a civil war between the new government who wants to abolish slavery, and rebels who seek to reinstate these practices, in an attempt to become strong like the Galra used to be. Ironically, the former Galra admiral in this sector has is supporting the abolitionists, mostly because most of his troops are Fenari. The rebels are lead by this man, Jahen. He's a bit of a shady character, we know almost nothing about him apart from the fact that he seems to have been part of illegal slave trade in the Empire.

"Meanwhile, the Sonka on the next planet…" Allura brought up a picture of red alligator-like aliens. "...are supporting the slavers. They're lead by a former general who fought against the Galra, so they hate them and are supporting the slavers because of an enemy-of-my-enemy effect. They're actually an egalitarian democracy themselves," Allura finished explaining.

"Okay, so we blast these slavers and keep the abolitionists in power, right?" Lance asked.

"Uhm, another big problem here is that the abolitionists, using the Galra fleet, are raiding merchants travelling through this system," Allura said hesitantly.

"What? You can't be serious, Princess. Slavery is evil, we can't condone that because the other side does some piracy!" Keith shouted, and Hunk made an agreeing noise.

"I wasn't planning to, Keith. I want to bring in the Galra commander and take out his fleet, so it can't be used for piracy. But we'll enforce peace on the Fenari. They'll abolish slavery and stop the war, or else Voltron will step in and make them stop," Allura said, and Keith looked hesitant.

"But they'll still be there. They'll wait until we're busy elsewhere and resume the war! We can't even form Voltron anymore! Not without... " Keith stuttered, unable to finish the sentence.

"I know, Keith. But they don't know that, or need to know that. The entire galaxy is scared. Scared of the future, scared the Galra will come back, scared of what might appear in their place. Voltron is a symbol of peace and unity against that fear. We just have to make sure they obey the treaty," Allura said as Pidge searched her records for data about the Fenari.

She had been trying to set up a sort of galactic Wikipedia, gathering all records she could find and compiling it in one easily searchable location. But finding information was hard.

There was effectively nothing on the Fenari. Surely the Galra had had more information, but that had been lost when the capital exploded. The only info Pidge had was that they lived on the planet Fenarium (probably not even the native name, but just what the Galra had called it), but the computer-generated page didn't even list their star or quadrant. The only other information was that they were "disturbed primitives", a nice way of saying they had not invented spaceflight themselves and had been unaware of alien life until the Galra invaded them for resources.

In the Fenari case, slaves.

There were a lot of 'disturbed primitives' around the galaxy. The Balmerians were another species like that, enslaved by invaders from the sky for their crystals.

"I'm not sure this is a good idea. I feel like we should take out these slavers." Keith's words brought Pidge back to the conversation.

"Keith, we're going to 'take out' everyone committing crimes there. Whether that's piracy or slavery. But we're going to do it nonviolently, using the threat of Voltron," Allura said cleary. Hunk nodded.

"I'd rather not fight. That's what the Galra would do," he said, and Lance made an agreeing noise.

"Pidge?" Keith asked, and she shook her head.

"Sorry Keith, I don't think war is the solution here. We don't even know anything about them. Nothing to make a tactical plan with, nothing that would help us win a war. Figuring it out would take forever, during which we can't help other planets," she said, looking at the nearly empty Fenari page again.

This mission, and several others they had been on the past few weeks, would have been so much easier if they just knew _more_. More about the species, their history. More about their planets, the geography, the climate. More about their technology levels, and how the Galra had affected them.

But databases like that were hard to come by with all the Galra repositories destroyed.

Keith finally agreed to Allura's plan, and for a while the only sound Pidge heard was the quiet zooming of the castle flying through space. She pondered the Fenari page, seeing a link to the Sonka, the species on the next planet. But clicking it brought up a page even emptier than the previous one. Only a species name, and their planet location relative to the Fenari. Nothing else. How were they supposed to negotiate with a species they knew nothing about?

* * *

Badly, it turned out.

The initial reception was good, if cold. The leaders of the different factions were glaring at each other, the abolitionist king moving his hand to his pistol every time he saw the rebel leader, Jahen. The Galra admiral looked wary of the paladins, but still attended.

Pidge knew little of diplomacy, but she felt like the negotiations went well. Allura made it clear that slavery was to be banned, that it would not make the Fenari strong, but instead would isolate them in this new galactic community. The Sonka agreed, though Hunk accidentally insulted them when he said the Galra slavery seemed to have affected them less than the Fenari.

Turned out the Sonka weren't even from their planet. The Galra had destroyed their old one and moved the survivors to this mining colony. The Sonka ambassador had nearly stormed out because of the remark, but Coran had thankfully been able to change her mind.

Pidge quietly added that information to the Sonka info page.

The Galra admiral initially resisted when told they would arrest him to investigate any abuses he might have committed as part of the Galra empire, but he agreed to stand down when Allura subtly reminded him what Voltron had done to the biggest Galra fleet.

All in all, there was a treaty everyone could agree with at the end of a hard day's negotiation, and all that was left was a celebratory dinner.

"This is absolutely delicious! What is it exactly?" Hunk asked. He sat next to Pidge, who was chatting with the Fenari about their technological progress.

"Bleakfish, giant aquatic animals from the northern ocean. They are incredibly hard to catch, so it is an honor to be served some," a royal dignitary sitting next to them said.

"It used to be more abundant. The Galra brought in these fish aliens. So incredibly strong. They could wrestle the bleakfish, chase and hold them for hours until they died from exhaustion. Of course, with this treaty, we can't do that anymore," one of the rebels said.

"Wait, you're saying slaves caught these?" Keith shouted, pushing his plate away. Pidge was usually not good at sensing moods, but even she could feel the chill setting over the table as all conversation stopped.

""Oh, I would hardly call them slaves. More as… beasts of burden. They weren't intelligent, you see. Primitives. Still in their steam age when the Galra found them. If they can't figure out a warp drive, then they're more useful as fishermen," Jahen said, slightly tipsy from the nunvil being served.

"Hey, humans haven't figured out interstellar spaceflight either, and we managed to kill Zarkon!" Hunk said, no longer happily eating the fish.

"Oh yes, you are good at fighting, I'll give you that. Like that human champion in the Galra tournaments. He killed dozens, even if the Galra had to give him their weapons," the slaver laughed, and Pidge resisted the urge to speak up.

"How dare you! That champion was our friend, our leader, our paladin!" Keith shouted, his chair falling over with a loud bang when he sprang up.

"The champion was a Paladin? Then why isn't he here? I would recognize him," the Jahen said. Allura clearly gestured at Keith to be quiet, but he ignored it.

"Because he's missing! The Galra did something to him, and he might be enslaved again! Someone like you might be torturing him somewhere, and we wouldn't know. But you know what? I think I know what Shiro would do to filth like you if he were here. And since he isn't here, I'll do it for him!" Keith shouted, jumping onto the table and running towards the slaver.

"Keith, no!" Pidge shouted, but it was lost in the screams when he pulled out his bayard. An armored Fenari grabbed his feet, making him stumble. Other bodyguards ran into the room as dignitaries trampled each other in their escape. Silverware and glasses shattered as Keith fell on the table.

Keith jumped back to his feet, his eyes burning with rage when he spotted Jahen crawling under the table a few yards away.

"You bastard!" he shouted, thrusting his sword at the slaver, but then someone jumped in his way. Blood sprayed over the plates of food.

Only when the man fell to the ground, clutching the giant wound on his neck, did Pidge recognize him as the dignitary who had explained what bleakfish were. She grabbed her own bayard.

Keith tried to swing again, but her whip wrapped around his arm, stopping him. Immediately the bodyguards piled on him, knocking the sword away as doctors tried their best to save the wounded official.

* * *

"I'm sorry," Keith said softly, a few hours later.

"It's a little late for apologies. You're… You murdered a high-ranking official of the ruling faction, while trying to assassinate the leader of another faction who represents millions of people. You revealed that we can't form Voltron. You destroyed any chance this system might have had for peace," Allura said flatly, somehow so far beyond furious she was just sad.

"And now… how many others are dead? How many will die in this war?" she asked, looking out of the window of the castle bridge, where debris from countless Galra ships was floating in space. Behind the wreckage they could see Fenarium, where the civil war was starting again. It looked so green from up here. It was hard to believe that so much bloodshed was happening there right now.

The paladins almost had to fight their way out of the palace, the king demanding they leave immediately and only reluctantly giving them Keith's bayard. When the castle flew into space, the Galra fleet had attacked them, saying there were "enemies of the people". After the admiral had realized they couldn't form Voltron, he had decided to take his chances against the lions rather than face trial.

They had to fight. At least the pirating fleet was gone now. And maybe with the admiral dead, the Sonka wouldn't be backing the slavers anymore. As Pidge updated the Fenari wiki page with the events of the day, she wondered how this would change the balance in the civil war. Keith's actions had affected the lives of hundreds of millions of people on Fenarium. Another stone causing ripples across an entire planet. What a way to make history. She felt sick, making a new page on the "Battle of Fenarium," a battle she just participated in. But if she wasn't going to, then who would?

Keith remained silent, as did the other paladins. Even Lance, usually so loud, didn't know what to say.

"Do you really think that's what Shiro would have done?" Allura eventually asked, much quieter now.

"No," Keith said simply, shaking his head. "He would have told me to be patient, and to stay calm. I didn't mean to kill him. The one who jumped in front of me. But… But it doesn't matter. Shiro is gone! We should be out looking for him! Obviously without him we can't do this kind of stuff!" His voice became louder and louder.

"Keith… we tried looking. But we have no clue what happened to him or where he could be. With Pidge's family we at least know they're somewhere in the Galra Empire, or what used to be the Empire. But Shiro… he could be in another dimension, or teleported to a different galaxy, or just… gone. The universe needs us, Keith. The universe needs Voltron," Allura said, the pain in her voice clear.

"But there is no Voltron without Shiro! And without him, we suck at this peacekeeping thing!" Keith shouted, before running out of the room.

"Should I go after him?" Hunk asked. Coran sighed.

"Let's leave him alone for a bit, he needs space to think," he said.

"He's right in some ways, though. We suck at this. We're no diplomats," Hunk said after a long silence. "Well, you are, Princess, and Coran is, but not us Paladins. And now we don't even have Voltron anymore. Just lions, but even with four lions, we can't be helping in every trouble spot in the galaxy! I mean, look at this!" He brought up a map of the galaxy on the big screen. Dozens of red dots flashed all over, and hundreds more yellow ones beeped.

"While we were down there, fourteen more conflicts started, and two planets we promised Voltron's protection to asked for our help. This isn't working. We can't help the entire galaxy. Not just the six of us," he finished, looking defeated.

"I thought it was over when we defeated Zarkon. That we had done our job, you know? We destroyed the Galra Empire, and we could go home heroes. We saved Earth and everyone else from Zarkon. But instead we're doing this endless, pointless diplomatic theater," Lance said.

"I don't feel like I belong here either. I don't know anything about politics. I'm an astronomer, an engineer. I just wanted to find my family, not fix a galaxy. I don't know how to do that. I don't know anything about any of these alien species. No one knows anymore, all the records were destroyed!" Pidge said, projecting her empty wiki pages on the screen.

"Just like no one knows where my brother and father are. Any records of which prison they're in, where that would be… it's all gone," she finished, feeling exhausted.

"But if we don't do this, if we don't bring peace, then who will? My father entrusted me to do this. Altea is gone, and the Altean dream of galactic unity and peace is all that's left of it," Allura whispered, still gazing at the green planet surrounded by debris.

Suddenly Keith's voice rang through the room. They all turned to see him standing in the doorway, looking sad and small.

"When I was in the desert, after being kicked out of the Garrison, I had a lot of free time. So I read a lot of history. And this one guy always stuck by me. There used to be a conqueror called Alexander the Great. He conquered most of the known world, and was planning to conquer even more. But then he suddenly died, and before his corpse was even cold his generals were fighting over the throne," he slowly said.

"The empire collapsed in days, the generals turning into warlords, kings of their own scraps of land. I guess at that time it must have felt hopeless, to bring peace to that. And no one could, not for centuries.

"But one of the generals, he didn't really seek to conquer. He was called Ptolemy. His is the only name I can remember. The others just fought and fought, and they didn't do anything _important_. Ptolemy took his own part of the empire, a place called Egypt, and instead of conquering more, he focused on developing Egypt. He invited people from the rest of the former empire to join him. Scholars, soldiers, architects."

Pidge hadn't expected this from Keith, but she could see he was sincere. It was thousands of years ago, but this felt _current_ somehow. She had never thought of history as important, but now she wondered if she couldn't learn something from Ptolemy.

"You see, Alexander had founded a city in Egypt called Alexandria, but Ptolemy truly built up this city. Instead of waging war, he… he built an enormous library there, collecting books and scrolls from all over the world. And he built a giant lighthouse on an island in the harbor, called Pharos. It would guide traders and sailors to the city. And… it worked. Alexandria became a center of culture, trade, and scholarship. It became a symbol of peace, of cooperation between Greeks and Egyptians and Persians and everyone else who wanted to study there. While the other kingdoms collapsed or were conquered by new warlords, Ptolemaic Egypt endured for centuries."

"I'm not sure what I'm trying to say here. I doubt a library would fix this galaxy, as much as knowledge would help. But I suppose just waging more war, or threaten to wage war with Voltron isn't going to help. I did a horrible thing there, but my bayard couldn't do anything else. It's a weapon, and the galaxy doesn't need a weapon. We need a new symbol of progress and unity. A new Alexandria," he finished, not meeting any of their gazes.

Coran eventually stood up and walked forward, standing next to Allura.

"You're right, Keith. Princess, you don't have to do this alone. Yes, your father entrusted you, but he always worked with others. That was the very base of Voltron. Paladins from all kinds of species working together. And even though the time of Voltron may be coming to an end, that dream doesn't have to," Coran said, putting his arm around Allura's shoulders.

"It's time we replace the Galra Empire with something new. Not an Altean Empire, with you as empress, but we need something every planet will be part of. Where exchange of culture and ideas are central. Where there are laws and rules and rights everyone can agree on, and which can decide what to do if war breaks out somewhere. An organization which can enforce those laws and rights everywhere. We need something different than Voltron. Voltron is a weapon, but we can't create peace and prosperity with weapons. We need cooperation. From everyone. So that this era will last long after we and Voltron are gone," Coran said. Allura was silent for a long time before nodding.

"You're right. We need… maybe not democracy exactly, but some kind of forum, a federation or union of everyone who agrees on those basic rights. And then if a planet violates those rights, the other planets can work together to stop them," she said.

As Coran and Allura began working out details of this new organization, with the other paladins hesitantly joining in, Pidge pondered what Keith had talked about. She had learned about the Great Library of Alexandria in her History of Science class, but she hadn't known about the great lighthouse. It reminded her of another class where lighthouses were discussed.

" _Obviously these stars are extremely far away. We can't detect anything from them except a tiny bit of light. But then how can we detect if planets revolve around a star? Trying to see them is like trying to spot a speck of dust floating around a spotlight shining right into your eyes," Professor Granville_ _explained. Katie eagerly took notes._

" _Any ideas? No, reflected light is invisible because the direct starlight overshadows it. No, we can't detect gravity bending the light around planets, though you are close, Mr. Hamada." the professor responded to several suggestions, and then the class fell silent. Katie felt stupid for not knowing it. Professor Granville clicked to the next slide on her presentation, showing several pictures of lighthouses._

" _How did sailors know where they were when they saw a lighthouse lamp? Obviously they knew they wear near a lighthouse, but there are dozens or hundreds along the coast. In a storm they could have been blown near any of them," Granville explained, showing a map of lighthouses along the Italian coast. Katie frowned. She had never expected to need nautical knowledge for astronomy._

" _You see, every lighthouse lamp is unique. Their signal is unique. They dim or obscure their lamps in certain intervals by moving metal sheets in front of it, like Morse code. Sailors would know when they see a light brightening and dimming in a certain speed which lighthouse it is, and if it was signalling certain things, like if the waters near it were especially dangerous that night._

" _We can do the same thing with stars. All we can see is the starlight. But when a planet moves between us and its star, it blocks a bit of the light, like an eclipse. We can detect a dip in the amount of light reaching us from that star, and like a lighthouse, it signals to us that there's something there. We can even figure out how big the planet is, or how far away from its star it is," Granville concluded._

Pidge had been impressed back then, that they could gain knowledge about planets just by looking at light. Now that she had seen the technology used by Alteans and Galra, with faster-than-light travel and sensors detecting life across an entire system, it seemed primitive. And yet, she couldn't stop thinking about it. Could she gather more information about planets and stars from afar?

They had absolutely no idea where her family was, or Shiro. They could be anywhere in the galaxy. But the galaxy is enormous. More stars than she could even imagine.

"Coran? How many planets are in the galaxy?" she asked, pulling him away from a discussion about colonization rights. He walked over to her, looking amused.

"I don't know exactly, Number 5. Let's look it up in the computer. Oh, looks like the Galra knew, but that was lost as well. So little knowledge survived. Maybe they know at the Vorgarian university, that used to be a hub of knowledge. Five thousand years ago, at least."

"But it looks like there are approximately 121 billion stars in the Milky Way galaxy, and about 5/6th of those stars have at least one planet revolving around them. We might be able to figure out how many planets a star has on average... " Coran started searching for more info, but Pidge wasn't listening anymore.

Wherever they were, her family and Shiro had to be on a planet or moon. All the Galra space stations were destroyed. So that's about a hundred billion star systems to search. A hundred billion light sources blinking at them. But she couldn't just look at the light. She needed to search the planets themselves, detect all life on those planets, see if any of it is human. She couldn't possibly do that from afar. But… But she might be able to do it from closer up. They had BLIP-tech and other sensors, if she could enlarge those, mount them on a spaceship or satellite she might be able to scan an entire planet.

But even then the numbers would be insane. Millions- no, billions of spacecraft, swarming all throughout the galaxy. They'd all have to communicate, coordinate. They'd send enormous amounts of data back. She couldn't possible manufacture or manage so many craft on her own.

But then she overheard Keith and Allura discussing galactic communication channels. With the collapse of the Empire, interplanetary communication was sporadic at best, most faster-than-light comm buoys self-destructing after their coordinating flagship was lost. Allura said that they might be able to set up a galactic infrastructure project, all planets chipping in to make new comm buoys.

"They can be more than just telephone lines," she said, rising from her chair and walking over to the others. "They can be sensors, mappers, collecting data, detecting troop movements, monitoring trade. You could have such a sensor in every system in the galaxy. A hundred billion lighthouses, providing new light after the darkness of the Galra Empire."

* * *

Pidge's jaw dropped when they entered the Grand Chamber. It was absolutely enormous. It was the biggest room she had ever been in, and she had been in Florence's cathedral. This building dwarfed that easily. It had to, to contain the envoys of thousands upon thousands of planets and races. Of course not all of them would join the Congress at the same time, that would be utter chaos.

Coran and Allura had spent the past few months writing out a new system of government for what was now known as the Galactic Council. With different layers of representation, checks and balances and spread of power, the sheer size of the system boggled Pidge's mind. This political process had more complexity than most computer systems.

But now it was finished and ready for opening. The parliament had become an entire city by itself on Olkarion. Representatives from each member state crammed themselves into the Grand Chamber, and cameras were readied to broadcast the opening live to all corners of the galaxy.

Well, those corners that still had FTL communication channels. Which, admittedly, weren't a lot of corners. The state of galactic infrastructure was awful. Which was exactly why it would be the first item to be discussed by the Council's upper ranks, highest priority.

Politicians want nothing more than to be broadcast, and their priorities reflect that. Pidge was learning more than she really wanted to know about what actually drives change in government.

And though she and the other paladins were very proud to see this work of diplomacy come to completion, her work was only about to start. Right after this opening ceremony, when she'd present her plans for the infrastructure project. Initially Pidge hadn't wanted to include communication equipment on her spacecraft. It would make them harder and more expensive to produce, so it would only take longer to find her family.

But Allura had made it clear that a project of this scale would need funding from many nations, and they'd expect something in return. And besides, bringing the light of communication was a noble goal, so Pidge had quickly given in.

Time dragged on as speech after speech was made, dozens of speakers each proclaiming the start of a new age and their hope for renewal. Her hands wouldn't stay still, fiddling with her tablet, checking her speech notes over and over again. She didn't feel ready for this. Thankfully it wouldn't be televised, but she'd still have to convince the leaders of trillions of people.

Finally, after hours of speeches and dozens of nunvil toasts, the ceremony was over and the chamber emptied. Only some representatives would stay for the infrastructure meeting, having all the thousands of members would be undoable. Lance, who had eagerly accepted dozens of glasses of nunvil from fans of Voltron, slapped Pidge's back, shouting she'd do great with her nerd plan. Hunk offered her a piece of candy, saying the sugar rush would help, and Keith simply nodded at her, giving her a thumbs-up.

Somehow that meant the most to Pidge, who took a deep breath before climbing the podium and plugging her tablet into the screen. Spotlights sprang on, and when she looked up all she could see were hundreds of shadows gazing at her.

Her stomach sank, but then she put her hand in the little side compartment of her paladin armor, fingering the photo of her and Matt. For him and for Dad. One deep breath, and then she started talking.

Greetings, fellow inhabitants of this great galaxy! I can see thousands of different species are represented here today, and many more are in the other chambers. But not everyone is connected to this place. Currently only 2 percent of the galaxy is consistently connected with real-time internet and communication. And we know next to nothing about each other, or about our galaxy," she spoke, starting her slideshow with a map of the galaxy. Small specks of light showed local networks, but the vast majority was dark.

"If we are to work together and bring our peace to all corners of the galaxy, we must first discover and communicate with all corners of the galaxy! That's why I'm starting PTOLEMY!" Pidge said, clicking to the next slide, containing in big letters

 _ **P**_ _roject for_ _ **T**_ _elecommunication and_ _ **O**_ _bservation of_ _ **L**_ _ife,_ _ **E**_ _nergy, and_ _ **My**_ _steries_

The chamber filled with whispering, though it quickly quieted down when Pidge moved to the next slide with a schematic of a spacecraft. It was labelled

 _ **PHAROS**_ _:_ _ **P**_ _rototype_ _ **H**_ _orde of_ _ **A**_ _utonomous_ _ **R**_ _eplicating_ _ **O**_ _bservation_ _ **S**_ _pacecraft_

"The idea behind PTOLEMY is simple. Creating autonomous spacecraft known as Lighthouses that will act as both communication relays and sensors. Having one in a star system should be enough to pass on all interstellar communication to and from that system, as well as scan the entire thing for life signs, geology, chemical makeup, and other properties."

More whispering, though it felt like the audience was excited. Pidge's hands were shaking slightly, and she gripped her tablet tighter.

"The usefulness of this hardly needs explaining. Fast communication, knowledge of resource deposits, census taking, and that's just the beginning. PTOLEMY will become the backbone of Galactic cooperation. But it isn't free. We'll need everyone's help to do it. A hundred billion of these craft will eventually spread through the universe. Thankfully, I have developed ideas for making them self-replicating, meaning we only have to start with a few thousand and they'll find resources they can mine to make more automatically," she said, showing more slides visualizing the growth in Lighthouses.

People in the audience began asking questions and offering ideas. Who owns these lighthouses exactly? What if primitives detect them? Could they harvest shipwrecks from space battles?

Half an hour later it had become an animatic discussion, and all nervousness had left Pidge. Allura moderated the discussion, making sure everyone got equal speaking time and remained civil. The politicians were more knowledgeable than she had expected, and they grilled her hard at times. A few asked 'dumb' questions, but those allowed her to clarify a lot on complicated aspects of the project.

Before she knew it, time was up and the main senators retired for an internal vote.

* * *

"Well done, Pidge!" the other paladins shouted when she left the big chamber, her head still spinning from the presentation. She managed a grin, not sure what to say. She still couldn't really believe the Council had actually approved her project. Sure, it still had to be voted on in different committees and chambers and levels, but according to Coran those were just formalities now that these people approved

"Indeed, we couldn't have had a better start to galactic cooperation than this!" Allura said, hugging her before quickly releasing when the door opened and other diplomats entered the hallway.

"I agree, Chairwoman Allura, the human presented herself well today. I see a bright future for her, and her species. The meeting on First Contact with primitive species is tomorrow, and I dare say humanity might be the first one to get to join our new galactic community!" a Morkavian senator said.

"Oh yes, if you and the other paladins of Voltron are representative of your species, that should be a no-brainer!" a green female diplomat said. Pidge couldn't remember which species she was, many of the humanoid aliens looked so similar.

Lance didn't care, clearly, as he moved to the front and leaned towards the dignitary.

"If you want to learn more about humanity's skill in all things, I'm your man. Make love, not war, that's the new motto, right? I think we can have a little interspecies… cooperation happening," he said in what Pidge guessed was supposed to be a flirtatious tone, but everyone in the hallway looked a little repulsed.

"How about you, Miss? I for one am looking forward to going where no man has gone before!" Lance continued, turning to another female representative.

The hallway became deadly quiet, the only sound a short slap when Allura facepalmed.

"Hmm, in retrospect, I don't think humanity is quite ready to join us yet. I'll have to vote against their inclusion if this is what they bring!" the representative said curtly, before stomping off. Many of the other aliens in the hallway nodded, looking at Lance and the other paladins with disgust. Pidge's stomach sank when she realized the implications.

The blue paladin didn't really seem to care, already eyeing up some of the other humanoids leaving the chamber.

"Lance! Can't you keep it in your pants for five minutes? Now you literally ruined humanity's chance of getting Contacted any time soon! That woman wasn't kidding!" Hunk said, looking angry. Allura looked sad, and Keith just looked disappointed.

"Uhm, so? We already know aliens exist!" Lance said with a nervous chuckle, his grin falling when he noticed his friends' faces.

"It matters because no one in the galactic community is allowed to interact with a non-contacted planet. We're not allowed to call our family, to let them know how we are, we aren't allowed to _go home_! They can't know of what's going on!

"But… we're paladins! We saved the galaxy! Surely we're allowed to-" Lance started, but Allura cut him off.

"No. No special favors, no privileges for friends. I'm not starting this institution with corruption," she stated clearly, her expression harsh. When she saw Lance's face fall she softened.

"I'm sorry. I know how important this is to you. I know that if I could see my father or Altea again I would do anything to do it. You've been away for so long, of course you want to talk to your family. I understand that. But this is not the way to do it. If humanity, including your families, is to join our community, they have to earn it. They have to prove that they're ready. And… I'm not sure if they are, even without Lance's comments," Allura slowly said, leading them to a side chamber. It was a small meeting room, a circular table with a dozen chairs. They sat down.

"Look, even if they decide not to contact Earth now, I'm sure humanity will still be at the top of the list. You've almost invented interstellar spaceflight, which I suspect will be the criterium. Some of your institutions already know aliens exist. And yes, you are the Paladins of Voltron, you've shown the galaxy what humans can do. But… the wheels of politics move slowly. It could take months or years. And until then, you can't go back to Earth." Allura said, and it was followed by a long silence.

"Then… what do we do? I thought this was it, you know? We set up this Galactic Council thing, we go back home. Back to my family and friends," Hunk said, and Lance nodded.

"I guess I'll see the sights of the galaxy now. Meet my fans. Look at this, I'm about to reach 400 billion followers on MySpace! That's a lot of love right there. Not… not like my mom or siblings, but it's something," Lance said with a sad chuckle as he raised his phone, displaying his follower count.

Suddenly Keith slammed his fist on the table.

"Some of us don't have a home on Earth. Some of our friends are still missing! We can't form Voltron! I'm just… I can't believe you're just abandoning Shiro. He sacrificed everything to make this happen and… and you just want to forget that. You just want to be cheered on by groupies, or make stupid selfies to put on the internet, or flirt with every woman you meet!" he shouted, his voice breaking near the end.

"Hey, what do you expect me to do?! We searched for months! But we've got no leads. At some point we've got to move on. Shiro is gone, Voltron is over!" Lance shouted back, before slumping back in his seat, apparently shocked by his own words.

"I'm not giving up on Shiro. I'm trying to find him and my family, the only way I know how. Hell, that's why we're all here today, for that stupid speech I just gave! You guys could help me, you know?" Pidge said, the words spilling from her lips without restraint. Fury she hadn't even known about before boiled to the surface, frustration about how none of the other paladins had even attempted to help her plan this.

Some part of her realized this conversation was spiralling out of control. Allura looked hesitant, unsure. Almost like these arguing paladins were scarier than those thousands of diplomats.

"How would I help with that? I don't know anything about that kind of tech. That's why you're getting those scientists," Lance said, before opening his phone again.

"But… But I still care. I… Look at this, okay? 400 billion followers. I'm not saying that to boast. I'm honestly freaking terrified of that number. I can't even… figure out how much that is. How many people apparently listen to what I say on this site. Like, there are 8 billion people on Earth. And I try to imagine every single one of them following me. Children, old people who barely know how a computer works, Facebook aunts who flood your timeline with _Minions_ memes, bronies, people who do nothing but argue on Twitter all day, artists, Donald Trump, Oprah! And that times fifty. My brain just can't process that. It's blank. But that's still what's happening right here on MySpace!"

"Not to mention the rest of the galaxy. How many billions or trillions more are out there? And I feel like… one or three missing humans just pale in comparison to all that. Everything finite pales in comparison to the freakin galaxy. I feel so small. So what can I do but… try my best to inspire those countless people who choose to listen to me? To try to make them smile? Isn't that worth something?"

There was a long silence. Keith clearly didn't know what to say to that. Pidge had considered similar things. But it was always on a theoretical level. She had to estimate how many people are in the galaxy for her project. But actually _comprehending_ that number was something else entirely.

"Hunk? I could use your help on the Lighthouse team," Pidge asked, hoping for some support.

"I considered it, but… Lance is right. There are so many people in this universe who need help _now_. So many war-torn planets. I want to help them. Shay is trying to set up a galactic relief effort, and I want to help her. I can't sit in a lab all day while people are starving and dying," he slowly said, not meeting her eyes. Pidge nodded, trying not to let the pain show.

"Keith? I know you're not much of a programmer, but I'm sure I can find something for you to do," she said, already knowing the answer. She had seen him talk to Kolivan earlier, looking more eager than he had in months.

"No, I don't think a lab is the place for me either. The Blade of Marmora has offered me to join them. They want to become a sort of secret service for the Council. If there's anyone who can find Galra intel of where Shiro is, it's them. And… I've been doing a lot of thinking lately, I think it's best for the universe if I stick to the shadows, and take out threats without anyone knowing," he said, and the others nodded sadly.

"I understand," Pidge said, before shaking her head. "But you don't ever have to stick to the shadows around us, okay?"

"So… is this it? We're splitting up? The end of Voltron? What about the lions? What about… us?" Lance asked, looking a little scared of the prospect.

"It looks that way. We're all going to help the universe in ways we think are best. And until the Black Lion chooses a new paladin, there is no more Voltron. But that doesn't mean we won't still be a team!" Coran said.

"I suggest you all take your Lions with you, wherever you go. The Black Lion can stay here, at the heart of the galactic community. Maybe it'll find a paladin, or else just watch over the people here, remind them of how Voltron brought peace to the galaxy," Allura said, before moving towards the door.

They walked outside in an awkward silence. Pidge suspected they were all a little nervous of going off on their own.

"I guess this is goodbye for now then," she said when they stood in the plaza near the lions. "But I just want to say… I'll miss you. You are like brothers to me! And Allura, you were the big sister I never had. You guys better call often, okay?" she managed to say before Hunk pulled her into a hug. The others joined in as well, though Keith had to be pulled in by Lance.

"When we find Shiro, we'll have a reunion, okay? Or when we get Contact with Earth. Or just sometime soon!" Lance said, before pulling out of the hug.

"Deal," they all said, before reluctantly walking to their lions. Feeling exhausted, Pidge sat in the pilot seat and watched Lance and Keith take off. Hunk followed a minute later, the metallic gleam of the lions quickly disappearing in the clouds.

She sighed deeply, before charting a course for Ryner's palace. At least when the lighthouses are operational they could all call each other easily. Until then, she was on her own.

* * *

Even though she had been building this place for weeks, Pidge couldn't really believe this place was real yet. That she was in charge of it. It had been mostly empty until now, apart from the Olkari construction crews. Today, her team would arrive. Aliens from all over the galaxy, united in their love of science and engineering. The best and brightest each nation in the Galactic Council could spare.

Pidge met Ryner, now president of Olkarion, at the spaceport (Pidge still couldn't believe she had her own spaceport). Although this facility was formally property of the Galactic Council, it was still on Olkarion, and the Olkari had helped shape a lot of it.

A huge ship landed in front of them, next to Green. Ryner created a ramp from the concrete ground so the crew could leave the spaceship. "Shaping concrete again instead of trees?" Pidge laughed, before trying to shape her face into something befitting an important manager.

One at a time the scientists left the ship, all kinds of species. Two wore special suits for different atmospheric pressure, while one was in what she could only describe as a motorized aquarium. Three of them were Olkari, the first two helping their colleague in a wheelchair down the ramp. Thankfully the rest of the site had been designed to be accessible to every creature imaginable.

"Welcome everyone, to New Alexandria!" she said when the assortiment of aliens were lined up on the platform. "My name is Pidge, I'm the one who came up with this project. But I don't like to think of myself as your boss. We're going to do this work together! That's why you're here, people from all walks of life. Biologists, astronomers, data scientists, engineers, physicists, chemists, and more than I can even understand. We're from all over the galaxy, but I hope that… that in a way, we can become family," Pidge said, smile falling at the last sentence. She knew many of these people had been through horrible things during the war. She had read the files. She knew why the Teravian was blind, and how the enormous Collosid had ended up without limbs.

And many a family member had gone missing. Even more for the intellectuals. The Galra hadn't liked their ideas, and in revenge their children or partners had been taken away to secret prisons just like Matt and Sam. Although Pidge hadn't mentioned it in the speech to the GC, the unwritten goal of Project PTOLEMY to find them was well-known.

Finally it was time to greet all of them individually. Some of them she had met in Council meetings, but many were strangers, though they often clicked instantly. The Olkari in the wheelchair said hello with a robotic voice coming from the voice box on her head, saying her name was Stella. Even though her body didn't work, she could use the Olkari mind-shaping powers to communicate and shape her thoughts. They talked for about a minute, Stella telling Pidge about her work with computing and artificial intelligence. Pidge felt sorry they had to cut the conversation short when Ryner politely coughed, reminding her of her duties.

"Okay everyone, let's show you what you'll be working with!" Pidge said, before turning around and walking to the facility. It was basically a giant tower, rising from a dry part of Olkarion. Too much moisture would be bad for electronics. In the distance they could see the pyramids and skyscrapers of the capital city.

The building was adorned with a big logo of PTOLEMY, a flame on top of a tower surrounded by stars.

"Here we have our entrance hall with exposition space, and entertainment and relaxation room to the side. In the basement are our servers, databanks, and other computing equipment, Stella, you'll be leading that division. The floors right above are living quarters, you'll get to see your rooms in a minute. Above that are laboratories for all kinds of disciplines I admit not knowing too much about, like biology and chemistry. There will be many opportunities for you all to test your work, whether simulated or physically, either here on the site or in our orbital station depending on what you need. Do try to keep it planetbound if you can, shuttles to the station are _expensive_ ," she said half-jokingly.

Green could easily and cheaply bring equipment into space, but they'd need her to pilot the lion. Although Pidge didn't mind doing 'grunt work', she did want her job here to be more than a glorified courier. Sure, shuttles were a possibility, but the funds weren't endless. She was expected to make complex financial decisions she didn't really feel equipped for. Thankfully the GC had brought over some accountants to help her, but she knew there was politics involved in that as well. Factions would try to get contracts for their own planets and races, or try to get their scientists the best positions.

Who knew galactic cooperation would be so hostile at times?

Pidge led the group through the labs and living quarters, showing the special accommodations made for the handicapped and unusual alien races. If there was one thing the GC wanted to project right now it was _inclusivity_ , and Pidge was very glad for that. These people were the best of the best, and she would hate to have to reject Stella or others because of bad accessibility.

Still, the building would be cramped, especially when the lower ranking members come in next week. Lab technicians, mechanics, testers, doing the grunt work the scientists relied on.

Finally the tour was over, and the group settled down in the bar to relax. Pidge found herself next to Stella again, talking animatedly with the robotic voice about data compression. Gradually the conversation turned to their families, however.

"So, Ms. Pidge, do you have a partner? Family to look after you?" Stella asked, and Pidge took another big gulp of nunvil before answering. The burning drink made her open up.

"No partner, but my brother was always my best friend. I'm looking for him. And my dad. They were captured by the Galra, and now they're… somewhere. Don't tell the politicians, but that's why I started this project originally," she said, pouring another glass. "How about you?"

"I have a partner in the City. She's not from Olkarion. Refugee from the frontier. Her colony was attacked by a Galra warlord called Lotor. She has been through a lot, and leaving her to come here was a difficult choice. But we decided it was about more than just us. There are so many lives that this project will improve, so much knowledge we'll gain, it's too important. And besides, the City is not so far. I can visit on my days off," Stella said. Even though it was all delivered through a robotic monotone and the Olkari's face remained perfectly still, Pidge could still sense the emotions in it. Regret, love, desire, doubt.

They were quiet for a moment, Stella using her mind-interface to control a wooden hand to lift her drink. Pidge considered offering to help, but decided against it, especially given the many judging eyes around the room.

"I've got friends and family on Earth as well. But they have no idea where I am, or what I'm doing. Because of this stupid political rule on contact with primitives, I'm not allowed to let them know anything," Pidge said, before swallowing more nunvil.

"I suppose I could use the cloaking tech on a Lighthouse near Earth, keep it off the record, but if the GC found out… Such a thing would still leave traces in the servers. Communication logs, coordinates… It would take just one techie to blab to the wrong person, and they'll have my head," she muttered, trying to keep her voice low but not really caring that much anyway. The nunvil made her feel too lightheaded to be too worried.

Suddenly Stella moved her wheelchair a little closer before constructing a wooden tendril. The claw-like limb grabbed the voice box from her chair and brought it to Pidge's ear. The paladin supposed this was her way of whispering.

"You know, the leader of the databank division could make sure those irregularities and glitches would be completely removed from the data. No need to burden the Council with some minor bug reports, right?" Stella said softly, and Pidge could swear her still eyes were twinkling mischievously. The girl grinned.

"Exactly. No one needs to be bothered with this silly bug saying there's a non-existent satellite. And in fact, since our lead computer scientist works so hard to fix all these bugs, I think she deserves plenty of time off to go to the city when she wants to," Pidge said, winking. Stella's only reaction was to pull back the speaker again, and for a moment Pidge swore she saw a cheek twitch, almost like she tried to smile.

"But no need to talk more about this tonight. Let's toast, to the beginning of a great project, and hopefully the start of a great friendship as well!" Pidge said, lifting her glass. The rest of the room quickly caught on, raising their glasses as well and toasting to their success. Only Stella didn't join in, simply lifting her glass to her lips, but Pidge had a feeling they'd get along splendidly.

* * *

The sun on Olkarion was setting after another long day, bathing the hallways in orange light. But the building didn't sleep. Nighttime was when the physicists tested their sensors and telescopes, when chemists checked on their mixtures, and ecologists ran their simulations on the vacant servers.

Pidge was about to go to bed, exhausted from a long day of overseeing AI design. She was about to enter the elevator to go to her living quarters on the fifth floor when her phone beeped. This wasn't unusual, she got more messages than she knew how to respond to, but this notification tone was unique, a happy chime.

All tiredness disappeared when she pulled out her phone and confirmed it was her secret program she had written herself. Right beneath it was a message from Stella, saying she had also confirmed the craft was in place and that it was only accessible from one computer. The message deleted itself a few moments later.

Pidge entered the elevator in a daze, pressing the button for the top floor where her office was.

Honestly she still couldn't believe she had an office. Sure, half of it was a lab, but the desk was still very big and had a lot of official papers and computer screens on it. Thankfully she had an assistant to help her with paperwork.

Right now paperwork was the furthest thing from her mind, however, as she locked the door behind her and made sure her assistant had already gone to bed. The computer booted up, and she opened the Lighthouse Network map. There weren't supposed to be any lighthouses yet, but she had sent her prototype into space in secret using Green.

The notification she got on her phone was that the satellite was now in position, lurking among space trash around a little planet called Earth. With shaking hands she connected her computer to the satellite, assuming direct control of it. And then, she connected to the Internet.

This was insanely illegal. If the Council found out humans might be able to detect their technology, she could be fired. The entire project could be shut down. But she had to do it.

She laughed softly when she opened a browser and found that Google responded to a quick test search. Actual Earth Internet. It had been so long. And although she was curious about world news and the latest memes, there was something more important she had to do. She logged into her video chatting account, surprised the password still worked. Incredible that it had only been two years. It felt like a lifetime.

845 missed calls, the display said. The number hit her like a punch in the gut. Hundreds from the weeks after she left home, gradually slowing down to one per day. There had been a call just 2 hours ago. She recognized the number that made those calls. With shaking hands she clicked the "call back" button, noting that it was early afternoon local time.

It rang once. Twice. Thrice. Just when Pidge thought no one would pick up, a voice rang out, moments before video flooded the screen. "Holt residence. Wait, it can't be... "

"Hi Mom," was all Pidge was able to say before tearing up. Quiznak, she had promised herself she wouldn't cry, but seeing her mom made her miss Earth more than she ever had before.

Her mom, meanwhile, was speechless, staring at the screen with dropped jaw. She looked older, more wrinkles around her eyes than Pidge remembered there being. The roots of her hair were starting to grey.

"Katie? Is that really you?" she eventually asked, voice shaking. Katie could only nod.

"Where have you been! You were… I thought you were gone! I searched everywhere! Were you kidnapped? Are you safe?"

"Yes mom, I'm fine," Katie said, removing her glasses for a moment to wipe at her eyes . Her mom's eyes were shining as well.

"Where are you? I'll come get you!" her mother said loudly, moving out of the camera frame, presumably to grab pen and paper. With her mom no longer taking up most of the frame, Pidge could suddenly see a picture of herself on the wall, with long hair and no glasses. It was cut from the photo she and Matt had taken on the launch pad. It was part of a poster, _HAVE YOU SEEN THIS GIRL?_ In big letters below the picture. A pile of paper, presumably more posters just like it, was stacked against the wall next to it.

Katie hadn't really considered what her mom knew. She knew she had left suddenly, but before now she hadn't truly realized that as far as her mom knew, she just vanished one day, the only thing left the cut hair in the sink.

Of course there had been no reason for her mom to think she was in space. She probably thought she was kidnapped by a creep, or joined a gang or something.

"Mom, slow down. You can't get me," she said loudly.

"What? Are you in a cult or something? I'm going to call the police!"

"No mom, I'm… you have to keep it a secret. It's gonna sound crazy, okay, but I swear I'm telling the truth. I can prove it as well. But please, just let me finish. And don't tell anyone," Katie pleaded, and her mom eventually nodded.

Pidge told her everything. Her sneaking into the Garrison, what happened to Matt and Sam, the Galra. She left out the parts of her being a Paladin, figuring her mother didn't need _that_ much shock in one day. Then she shared her screen, showing the details of Project PTOLEMY.

"See, mom, I'm gonna find them! And while doing it, I'll create the biggest encyclopedia in the universe. It's really important work. But it's an enormous undertaking. A hundred billion spacecraft, scanning the entire galaxy. That's why I have to stay here for now. But the moment I find them we're gonna come home. Together. I promise," Pidge said, and her mom shook her head.

"I can barely believe any of this. Aliens and robot lions and interstellar wars. It's like one of those movies you and Matt used to watch. Even with all you're showing me I wonder if you're not Photoshopping it or something. But I trust you, Katie. You wouldn't make this up.

"And this lighthouse project… It's insane and incredible, and if it were anyone but you I wouldn't believe they could create a project like this. But I know you can do it, Katie. So… So although I want absolutely nothing more than to hold you in my arms, I'll let you do what you have to," her mother said, before moving to hug the screen. Katie hugged hers as well, and it was almost like she could smell her mother's perfume again.

"I love you Mom. I love you so much," she whispered, unable to stop the tears from flowing.

"I love you too, baby. More than I have words for. And I'm so, so proud of you. My brilliant girl, changing the course of the universe. Just like your father said. He'd be so incredibly proud of you as well," her mother said, and Katie could hear her sobs between the words.

Eventually they sat back down, wiping at their eyes. "If there's anything I can do to help, let me know. Even though you're… up there, you're still my little girl, and I have to take care of you," her mother said, and Pidge smiled.

"There is something, actually. My friends from the Garrison, their families don't know anything about what happened to them either. Could you let them know that they are safe? Maybe I could send you letters from them you can pass on? You can't let them know about any of the space stuff, but they can know they're safe somewhere," Katie said, opening a new tab to send emails to Hunk and Lance asking for their families' addresses. After a moment of thought she started a mail to Keith too, asking if there was anyone at all he'd like to message.

"Of course. I can't describe how happy it makes me to know that you're safe, I kept thinking… I can't even say it. But I wouldn't wish this fear on anyone else, so of course I'll let them know. Anyone else you want to tell? Hiro misses you, he worries he did something wrong and that it's his fault you're… gone," her mother said before sighing. "He's not doing well. Illegal bot fighting, and he dropped out of college… I know it must seem like tiny problems to you now, but I think he'd appreciate a call as well."

Katie nodded. "I'll do that. I'll have to be careful what I tell him, but… it would be nice to see a familiar face again. And maybe he can help a bit with the Lighthouse project. He was always good at _Kerbal Space Program_ ," she chuckled. Her mom laughed through her tears as well.

"I think an intellectual challenge would be good for him. And for you as well. I just wish you didn't have to go all the way into space to find it! But I understand. Let's talk more tomorrow, okay? I love you," her mom said, and Katie nodded.

"I love you too. Talk to you tomorrow, hopefully. If I can't I'll send a message. Bye!" she said, before reluctantly ending the call. The sudden silence was deafening. Alone again. She hugged herself, trying to stop the tears. It would all be worth it when they find Matt and Dad. Then she could go back _home_. Hug her mom, play games with Hiro, _be a kid again_.

The door suddenly opened, Stella riding in with her wheelchair. Her face was still as always, but Pidge could feel the compassion. When the wheelchair stopped next to her, she gently put her arms around the Olkari and hid her sobs in her shoulder.

"Thanks, Stella. Thank you so much for helping me. For being here," she whispered. The only reaction was an awkward hug by the prosthetic limbs.

* * *

"You can't be serious," Pidge said, incredulous.

"Sorry Pidge, the Council voted yes on the Communications Defense Act. And next week they'll vote on the budget codifying the changes," Allura said with a deep sigh, and even through the video chat Pidge could see how tired Allura was.

"But this is impossible! There are already thousands of Lighthouses out, autonomously replicating! The Council can't possibly expect me to retrieve them all and add these stupid missiles to them! Especially if they cut my budget in half! I… I can barely do this with my current budget!" she shouted, her hands balling into fists.

"I know, but there's nothing I can do. I'm chairwoman, I can't express opinions about proposals. I have to be neutral. And they're really worried about this attack from last week. That's why they want these weapons, as deterrence," Allura said, too calmly. Pidge resisted the urge to scream.

"That was one satellite shot down because of a stray missile that was aimed at some pirate! And how do they expect us to even implement this? I can't possibly slap enough weapons on them to actually have a viable defense against a real attack. They're scanners, not bombers," she slowly said. Allura sighed.

"I think some factions are using this to shut down PTOLEMY. The Localists want to implement their own system, so they added these demands to make it not viable," she said, and Pidge shook her head.

"Don't they understand how important this is? We're finally making progress! We have consistent communication in 30% of Council space already, expected to increase to 40% over the next few weeks. And all the data we have rolling in, the research going on here… I can't shut it down. I… we haven't found them yet, Allura. I know they're out there, that I can find them, but I need more time, more lighthouses!" she said, burying her head in her hands.

Next to the screen was the picture of her and Matt on the launchpad, and a picture of her father her mom sent. Behind those was a picture of Team Voltron taken by Coran, back when they were still together. Shiro was smiling.

She couldn't abandon them.

"I know Pidge. I know. Listen, _my_ hands are tied, but that doesn't mean there's nothing _others_ can do," Allura said after quickly looking around the room she was in. Pidge moved her head up, staring at her.

"What do you mean?"

"I can't say anything right now, but I can… contact some people. People with influence. Like you said, this is bigger than the council now. The entire galaxy depends on the PHAROS network. If we can mobilize the public before the budget vote next week… They might reconsider," Allura whispered. Pidge instinctively leaned closer to the screen.

"What can I do?" she asked in a low voice.

"Nothing. It's best if you're not seen lobbying. Leave this one for me. You've already done so much," Allura said, and Pidge slowly nodded.

"Okay. I hope this works. I can't give this up, Princess. I _can't_!" she said, before closing the call. She was exhausted. Damn the politicians. Damn that pirate. Damn everything.

A few minutes later when she had collected herself, she logged into the databank, opening the biological section. There were a lot of new videos, filmed all over the galaxy. Every day they were discovering new species. Sighing, she opened a video of a strange species found around a spacecraft junkyard the historians had been talking about. The video entry gave them a long and complicated name, but the biologists just called them 'space fluffballs'.

Pidge was surprised to see familiar faces, the cute animals she had met when the paladins were separated after their first battle with Zarkon. Rediscovered by her scanners. Funny, in a way the relay she had made there had been the first Lighthouse, guiding Allura and Coran to her.

Pausing the video, she got up and grabbed the fluffballs she had retrieved that day. They were simple pets, needing little care, but hugging them always made her feel a little better.

"No politics for you, is there? Your world is so small, but so simple," Pidge whispered as she restarted the video.

* * *

A few days later Pidge was in the cafeteria surrounded by people who wanted to pet Kevin the fluffball. However, the queue got disrupted when dozens of phones played the same notification tune. Pidge recognized it, it was a MySpace thing. She had reluctantly made a profile herself, only following the other paladins and not sure what to post apart from a picture of Kevin and some status updates on PTOLEMY.

So she was surprised when her phone buzzed as well, though she sighed when she saw it was just another post from Lance. Usually they were just funny videos or announcements about his next 'tour'. Apparently he had something big planned for when he'd hit one trillion followers.

Pidge was about to delete the message without looking at the post when someone shouted "No way, Lance posted about us!" Gasps rang out as everyone looked at phones. Pidge opened hers as well, surprised to see a video called 'The Importance of Project PTOLEMY'.

"Let's get it on the big screen in the conference hall," one of the techies said, and the cafeteria quieted significantly without dozens of copies of the same video playing.

A few minutes later most of the scientists in the building had settled in the big cinema-like room.

"Hey awesome people, your favorite paladin Lance here! Today I wanted to talk about something that probably sounds boring, but is the reason you can all see my cool videos! Unfortunately, the dumb politicians-" Lance said, before being shushed by someone offscreen.

"Correction, our 'most wise representatives'… " he said, raising his fingers to do air quotes. "want to shut it down because they fear my power! They're angry their videos don't get as many views, so they want no one to get views! But let me start from the beginning, PTOLEMY is the brainchild of my dear nerd friend Pidge! Hi Pidge, I know you're watching!" Lance continued, waving at the camera as the logo of Project PTOLEMY appeared on the side of the screen.

Pidge wasn't sure how to feel about this at first, but as she kept watching she realized that Lance was trying to help her. Allura must have contacted him. The video explained what the network was about, in a very simplistic way, and then showed some successes. Clips of primitive civilizations discovered, cute animals like the fluffballs, and highlights from the finale of a galactic gaming tournament.

"So do you guys think PTOLEMY is awesome? If you do, then you better let your representatives know! They think they can shut off our internet, they're wrong! Thanks for watching, and I'll see you tomorrow with more awesome videos!" Lance concluded. The room was filled to the brim with people by now, cheering loudly.

"Guys, this is not the only thing. They're talking about us on the news!" a chemist shouted. The techies in the front scrambled to get the news channel on screen. Pidge expected talk about Lance's message, but instead she saw a refugee camp.

"I can't overstate how important the PTOLEMY project, and its PHAROS Lighthouses, are to our relief efforts," Shay said, being interviewed by a tiny alien. Hunk was standing next to her.

"Whenever there's war or natural disaster we rely on these scanners to see what the damage is, and how many people need our help. The databases the scientists on Olkarion-" Shay's next few words were drowned out by loud cheering from said scientists.

"-invaluable. It's how we find out what kinds of food the affected people eat, what kind of shelter they need, and… if necessary, what kind of planet we can evacuate them to. We need this info, and PHAROS is the only service that provides it," Shay finished. Hunk put his hand on her shoulder, clearly proud.

"How much of a difference does this make? How many lives do you think this data has saved?" the interviewer asked, and Shay shook her head.

"I don't dare to put a number on it. Thousands? Millions? Does it even matter? Even a single one would be worth it. For example, after the meteor strike on Barundwe we managed to save over 70% of the wounded because we could find them with the BLIP scanner, even through all the dust. That's over a hundred thousand people. Without it… I don't even want to think about that," Shay said firmly, looking straight at the camera as if she was trying to glare down the representatives trying to kill the project. A moment later the news cut back to the studio.

"Thank you, Ms. Shay of Balmera, president of the Galactic Relief Organization. In other news, the mysterious organization known only as the Blade of Marmora has announced that yesterday they attacked a secret Galra meeting called the _Kral Zera_. According to the Blade's spokesman, the meeting was between all remaining Galra leaders with the purpose of choosing a new emperor and plot an overthrow of the Galactic Council."

"The existence of this meeting is alarming news, but thankfully Council Minister of Security Averani has confirmed that the Blade eliminated all attendants. Anyone who could possibly lead an uprising, notably Grand Witch Haggar and Prince Lotor, are confirmed dead. Averani is clearly relieved, saying that this is the true end of the Galra Empire," the newsreader said, before showing interviews with various representatives and experts, all of whom talked about a new era of peace.

The room was very solemn as people watched footage of the burning ruins of the Kral Zera. Many of the aliens walked outside to the quiet gardens. Pidge left as well, needing fresh air. Kevin squirmed in her arms, and she let him fly around a bit. All around her people called their families to talk about the news.

"I am glad they're dead," Stella's voice broke Pidge out of her concentration. "Lotor killed my partner's family. Maybe now we can start to heal. Truly heal. All of us," Stella said. Her eyes didn't have their usual twinkle, but when Pidge put her hand on her shoulder some light returned.

A notification sound awkwardly broke their moment, and Pidge checked her phone to see a message from Keith.

 _I think this'll make those old men reconsider the need for those weapons on your lighthouses._

Pidge teared up a bit, managing to send a thank you and an invitation to New Alexandria back.

"We'll find your family too, Ms. Pidge. And all the other missing people. Even if it takes a hundred years. And even after that we'll keep discovering new things," Stella said, looking towards the rising sun. The sunlight reflected brightly off the giant logo on the tower, making the stars glint and the flame flicker.

"Yeah. This place will endure," Pidge simply said, sitting down next to her friend as Kevin landed between them.

* * *

A loud and incessant beeping woke Pidge from her slumber. She groaned as she slightly lifted her head from the keyboard, her neck protesting at the awkward angle she had been lying in. Huh, she must have fallen asleep while trying to solve that weird data corruption bug.

"Five more minutes," she mumbled, not wanting to answer some stupid email right now, and pulled her hoodie over the keyboard to make a more comfortable pillow. However, just as she laid her head back down the computer beeped again, and her eyes flipped wide open.

That wasn't the normal notification sound. This was the special one, reserved for… Quiznak, she barely dared to hope. It wouldn't be the first time a bug had caused a false alarm. But this time _felt_ different somehow.

Pidge hastily turned down the brightness of her screen when it blinked on, the only source of light in the dark office. No moonlight on Olkarion. Her glasses were skewed on her face, and she rubbed at her eyes before righting them, squinting at the lighthouse map. Right there, in a distant corner of the galaxy deep inside old Galra territory, was the lighthouse sending the signal. PHAROS C-0451A. Pidge opened the report, skipping straight to "Life Signs".

The system, a measly two planets orbiting a red dwarf, didn't have any native life. But the satellite had detected about a hundred beings on the outer planet, dozens of different species. No Galra, none alive at least, but all of the present species were known. All of them had been used for slave labor by the Galra. And right there, at the bottom of the list, was the line she had been searching for for so very long.

 _Number of Humans: 3_

With shaking hands she downloaded all information about the system to her personal computer, and to Green. She briefly considered contacting the other paladins, asking them to come with her, but she couldn't wait another minute. This would not be a dangerous mission. Just a prison colony left isolated after the collapse of the Empire. All the prisoners would fit into Green.

And besides, how much better would her message be if Shiro himself could leave a voicemail?

She hastily scribbled a note to Stella and her assistant to let her know where she went, before running off to Green, stopping only to grab a crate of emergency supplies Hunk had sent her once. Who knew what condition these people were in?

"Come on, girl," Pidge said as the lion woke up. A few moments later they were flying, the red lights from New Alexandria quickly becoming smaller. They zoomed over the capital city, its pyramids and obelisks filled with light. The wheels of government and diplomacy never stop, after all.

Pidge couldn't stop smiling as she charted a course to high Olkari orbit. She had to be careful to navigate the dense sky filled with satellites and orbital stations. Fragments of music and radio filled the cabin as Green flew between communication relays. Floating beacons guided her to a safe place to engage her FTL. After a robotic voice from the traffic control station gave her the all-clear, she set off, jumping straight to the next quadrant.

This was a much emptier space, the only object in the system the local Lighthouse. Green's computers automatically connected to it, and it gave Pidge the coordinates of the next system and a warning of an asteroid belt she should avoid.

So she jumped from system to system, following the Lighthouses. And for the first time in many months, Pidge allowed herself to _look_ at the planets and stars she passed. There were incredible sights: a binary star system, a planet with over a thousand moons, a system where she had to engage her stealth tech so the primitive telescopes would not detect her. She smiled at the simple rockets and small base the local natives had constructed on their closest planet. A stealthed lighthouse was nearby, recording their progress and sending it to the Council. This was a species that could very well be Contacted soon.

If Pidge hasn't been in such a hurry, she might have checked out their home planet, but as it was she jumped to the next system, where a star was about to die. The radiation disrupted her link with the local lighthouse, but a dozen other research craft observing the star gave her the coordinates she needed.

The next system was Fenarium, the planet that had descended into civil war after Keith killed that dignitary. These days it was at peace. Pidge spotted a Galactic Council ship orbiting Fenarium, making sure all sides obeyed the peace treaty. The green planet was buzzing with activity as the locals built their first orbital station.

Again, Pidge didn't stay long, just enough to clear her presence with the peacekeeping ship, before preparing to jump to another uninhabited system.

The lighthouses guided her, the bright flames on the logos a shining light in the emptiness of space. Just a few more systems, and she'd find them. Just a few more jumps, and she'd be _home_.


End file.
